Syrian President Bashar al-Assad left Damascus on Sunday for an unknown vacation spot, whereas rebels stated that they had infiltrated the capital with none signal of military deployments.
Syrian military items deserted their positions on the suburbs of Damascus Saturday night time, fleeing from advance of the rebel forces.
The army stated it was “strengthening” defensive traces across the capital, which appeared to have collapsed.
People experience a tank within the southern Syrian metropolis of Daraa. Regime forces left many weapons behind – Sam Hariri/AFP through Getty
Mohammed al-Rahmoun, the Syrian Interior Minister, beforehand stated that there’s a “very sturdy safety cordon on the outskirts of Damascus and nobody can break it”. But Syrian opposition fighters denied this declare on Sunday morning, reaching the capital for the primary time since 2018.
THE Syrian regime they withdrew from the cities of Aleppo, Hama and Homs in speedy succession ranging from rebel offensive it began lower than two weeks in the past.
In the 2011-2016 civil battle, the Assad regime turned the tables on opposition forces with the assistance of Russian airstrikes and Hezbollah troops.
Both Fly AND Iran, HezbollahThe major sponsors of have their consideration elsewhere, on conflicts elsewhere.
He left the Syrian military with out a lot help within the face of the meteoric insurgent offensive led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS).
Analysts advised the Telegraph that low pay, low morale and poor expertise had been hampering the military’s effectiveness.
“The Syrian military has by no means been superb: it has been dominated by worry and terror, supported and supported by the Russians since 2015, who’ve supplied firepower and route. Most of the officers had been chosen as a result of they had been near Assad,” stated Hamish de Bretton Gordon, a retired British Army colonel and chemical weapons adviser to NGOs working in Syria and Iraq.
“Commanders… are extra targeted on smuggling and extortion than on establishing defensive positions and main their troops,” stated Greg Waters, of the Middle East Institute.
The military has largely prevented heavy combating since a ceasefire was reached with rebels in 2020, initially of the pandemic.
Opposition fighters take away a Syrian authorities flag from an official constructing in Salamiyah, east of Hama – Ghaith Alsayed/AP
“The collapse of the military is a mirrored image of a extra common collapse of Syrian state establishments,” stated Jihad Yazigi, editor-in-chief of the Syria Report.
“There is a deep feeling in regime areas that issues are usually not solely not enhancing, however that there is no such thing as a prospect of enchancment,” he added.
Stephen Cook, a Middle East professional on the Council of Foreign Relations, advised the Telegraph that the majority of the Syrian military was made up of conscripts who “did not need to be there”.
“Only elite items just like the Republican Guard could possibly be trusted to struggle,” he added. “That’s why Assad known as Hezbollah.”
Mr. Cook described President Bashar al-Assadlike a “Soviet-style” military that has large issues with provides and logistics.
In latest years, Syria has additionally grow to be a serious producer and provider of medication, which has led state establishments comparable to the military to grow to be de facto nodes of an organized felony community.
An enormous portrait of the Syrian president towers over the abandoned streets of Damascus – Omar Sanadiki/AP
With his troopers retreating on all fronts, Assad this week introduced he would increase their salaries by 50%, a transfer that consultants counsel was a knee-jerk try to handle long-standing ethical issues.
“The undeniable fact that the safety forces disbanded is a little bit of a shock, but it surely’s not a giant shock, to be trustworthy,” added Natasha Hall, senior fellow on the CSIS Middle East Program.
“They did not have the morale to face as much as one thing like that.
“We neglect that they misplaced lots of people throughout this battle, we neglect that (Assad’s) Alawite sect has been impoverished within the mountains for a lot of, many many years.
“It’s not like they gained a lot from this regime. The truth is that the Assad regime has used the sectarian narrative to make them imagine that that is an existential difficulty for them.”
“We neglect that they misplaced many individuals throughout this battle, we neglect that his Alawite sect has been impoverished within the mountains for a lot of, many many years.
“It’s not like they gained a lot from this regime. The truth is that the Assad regime has used the sectarian narrative to make them imagine that that is an existential difficulty for them.”
A regime army automobile deserted on the aspect of a highway close to Hama – Omar Haj Kadour/AFP through Getty
The good preparation, ways and skillful use of propaganda by the rebels seem to have additionally put the Syrian military in a state of shock. HTS has officers, particular forces items, drone forces and night time commandos.
“The rebels combating as we speak are a really completely different pressure from these fought earlier than by the regime. They are higher outfitted and disciplined… I assume Turkey had a robust position on this. They have extra to achieve,” Waters stated.
Large numbers of military deserters laid down their weapons and surrendered to the rebels, with a protracted queue forming in Idlib after they had been supplied amnesty.
